HUGE UPSET: Local qualifier Jacob Willcox takes out world No.1 Italo Ferreira at the Margaret River Pro
Jacob Willcox returned to Margaret River with one thing in mind following the disappointment of being cut from surfing's elite tour at his home event last year: Redemption.
At Main Break on Tuesday, the local qualifier took another step towards his ultimate goal of re-qualifying for the World Surf League's championship tour, beating current world No.1 and 2019 world champion Italo Ferreira in pumping 8-10ft conditions.
Willcox, a Margaret River local who grew up surfing the region's famous breaks, had to do it the hard way just to earn his spot in the field, winning last week's trials.
And after a nightmare opening round defeat to Ferreira, in which his posted just two scores of 2.50, Willcox was left questioning everything, laid up in bed with a head cold for two lay days, before coming out firing in the elimination round earlier on Tuesday and saving his best for a rematch with the Brazilian powerhouse.
'After this event last year I felt so disappointed, so heartbroken,' he said.
'Redemption: that was my one word for this week. I just want to compete and hopefully this result leads me into a good campaign on the challenger series. I'm so fired up to get back on the tour.'
Willcox looked a different surfer to Saturday's rough start, putting it down in part to an equipment switch.
He scored an excellent 8.33 for a wave that included sticking a massive vertical drop, three turns and a tough finish, adding to a solid 6.67 to post a 15.00 two-wave total.
Ferreira put up a 6.87 and 6.00 for a 12.87 total but was always chasing and couldn't find the big number he needed.
'I had such a shocker that first day, I rode the wrong board and couldn't even get off the bottom so it felt good just to get out there on the right board and do a turn,' Willcox said.
'I was stoked to surf against Italo, he is one of my favourite surfers and so amazing to watch out there, it got me so fired up. To beat him was epic.
'I'm knackered after those two heats, it's pretty draining conditions with a lot of swell. I've been sick as a dog the past few days. It's good just to be back in the water.'
The 27-year-old has now surfed the Margaret River Pro eight times but never previously made it to the round of 16.
With his best result at home already locked in, he hopes local knowledge can help him land a few more upsets.
'I feel like it's almost anyone's game out there, you just need to be able to pick the good waves and being a local definitely helps,' he said.
'It's cool to be able to compete against these guys in the big event and beat them. I know I can do it, sometimes it just happen how you think.
'It's a blur out there when you ride out of that end section but you can hear everyone getting behind you. I'm so happy to have an event here at home to compete in front of all my friends and family.'
Willcox took six months away from competition to re-group following the disappointment of being cut from his rookie year on the CT and failing to re-qualify on the CS. He admitted feeling burnt out after his decade-long attempt to make it on surfing's elite tour, only to have it ripped away at the mid-season cut, only a few months in.
'I'm just trying to put some good heats together and set myself up for a good year,' he said. 'I've had about six months off with no competing and I feel like that's given me a lot of energy to come into this year pretty hungry.'
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It felt like a kind of day where you could just sit and wait for one and not be any good anyway, so I just wanted to get my feet under me and ended up getting some really good scores. "It got very stressful at the end, but I was stoked to get through." American Nolan Rapoza won the heat with 13.50 points. Callinan (13.37) locked in second but Indonesian 21-year-old Bronson Meydi (13.17) closed right in on the heat leaders with seven minutes remaining, when he produced a spectacular 8.67-point ride that included a 360-degree air reverse. "I went the same wave but I went the other way," Callinan said. "Merewether, traditionally, is a right-hander. He went left and I was thinking, 'That's good, it's normally pretty bad the left, so that's good for me', and then I hear them say, 'Eight points' ... and there was still a lot of time left. "I only needed a six to get to first, so I kind of tried to focus on getting that but at the same time trying to block him on waves that were going to allow him to get it. "My year has kind of felt like I've had some good heats and they just haven't gone my way, and it was almost feeling a bit like that again, but I was stoked to squeak through." Former Championship Tour (CT) surfer Wilson, who grew up on the Gold Coast but now calls Newcastle home, is staging a professional comeback after several years out of the competitive limelight and arrived at Surfest after making the final of the top-tier Gold Coast Pro in early May as a trialist. The 36-year-old produced a commanding heat win when Surfest started on Monday but could not back it up in the second round on Thursday. Wilson, Surfest's 2020 winner, was unable to post a higher wave score than 4.17 points in tricky, wind-swept conditions in a stacked heat and ultimately finished fourth with a two-wave total of 4.94 points. Hawaiian Eli Hannerman was the heat-nine winner with 13.50 points, including a heat-high 7.67-point ride. Australian Liam O'Brien (12.93) was second and also progressed while Frenchman Charly Quivront (11.70) was third. "It's one of those things where you like to think you have a bit of local knowledge, but on a day like today, when it's breaking everywhere, it can be anyone's game," Callinan said. "Jules has been on such a roll and in such good form ... for him to not even get a score, that does show how hard it was." Baker was sitting second and looking as though he would progress in heat 13, only to be narrowly pipped on the buzzer by Brazilian Peterson Crisanto. Crisanto needed a wave score of 5.00 points or more to leap ahead of Baker and earned a 5.30 on his buzzer ride to finish with a two-wave heat score of 11.50. Baker, the 2022 Surfest champion, finished third with 11.20. Brazilian Samuel Pupo took a commanding win with a score of 15.24. Cibilic was the first local to advance to the round of 32, set to be surfed on Friday. The 25-year-old natural-footer hit the lead in heat 10 with 10 minutes remaining and won with a best two-wave score of 12.00 points. He edged Hawaiian Finn McGinn (11.60) in second while Australian Mikey (11.10) and Japan's Tenshi Iwami (9.23) were eliminated. "I'm frothing and stoked to get through," Cibilic said. "You don't really need local knowledge out there on a day like today, just fitness to get back out there and get in the right spot. "I feel like I took off on 15 waves and fell off on 13 of them, so I'm just stoked that I pulled off a couple. "In the off-season, I really worked on getting fit and trying to surf with a clear head, especially for conditions like this." Merewether's Philippa Anderson is through to the women's round of 32 after winning her opening round heat on Monday. Merewether's Jackson Baker and adopted Novocastrian Julian Wilson were big-name Surfest casualties on a mixed day for local competitors in tricky conditions at Merewether beach on Thursday. Merewether's Morgan Cibilic and Ryan Callinan both advanced in bumpy 1.2 to 1.8-metre waves and are now set to go head-to-head in the round-of-32 surfers. Cilbilic took a heat win while Callinan progressed after placing second in his heat as the opening event of the World Surf League Challenger Series (CS) was back in action on Thursday after two lay days. Callinan quickly got to work in heat 12, posting wave scores of 5.83 and 5.87 before locking in a 7.50-point effort to set up progression. "It was definitely pretty rogue and all over the place, and a lot of power but pretty fun," Callinan said of the conditions. "I was just happy to catch waves and ride waves. It felt like a kind of day where you could just sit and wait for one and not be any good anyway, so I just wanted to get my feet under me and ended up getting some really good scores. "It got very stressful at the end, but I was stoked to get through." American Nolan Rapoza won the heat with 13.50 points. Callinan (13.37) locked in second but Indonesian 21-year-old Bronson Meydi (13.17) closed right in on the heat leaders with seven minutes remaining, when he produced a spectacular 8.67-point ride that included a 360-degree air reverse. "I went the same wave but I went the other way," Callinan said. "Merewether, traditionally, is a right-hander. He went left and I was thinking, 'That's good, it's normally pretty bad the left, so that's good for me', and then I hear them say, 'Eight points' ... and there was still a lot of time left. "I only needed a six to get to first, so I kind of tried to focus on getting that but at the same time trying to block him on waves that were going to allow him to get it. "My year has kind of felt like I've had some good heats and they just haven't gone my way, and it was almost feeling a bit like that again, but I was stoked to squeak through." Former Championship Tour (CT) surfer Wilson, who grew up on the Gold Coast but now calls Newcastle home, is staging a professional comeback after several years out of the competitive limelight and arrived at Surfest after making the final of the top-tier Gold Coast Pro in early May as a trialist. The 36-year-old produced a commanding heat win when Surfest started on Monday but could not back it up in the second round on Thursday. Wilson, Surfest's 2020 winner, was unable to post a higher wave score than 4.17 points in tricky, wind-swept conditions in a stacked heat and ultimately finished fourth with a two-wave total of 4.94 points. Hawaiian Eli Hannerman was the heat-nine winner with 13.50 points, including a heat-high 7.67-point ride. Australian Liam O'Brien (12.93) was second and also progressed while Frenchman Charly Quivront (11.70) was third. "It's one of those things where you like to think you have a bit of local knowledge, but on a day like today, when it's breaking everywhere, it can be anyone's game," Callinan said. "Jules has been on such a roll and in such good form ... for him to not even get a score, that does show how hard it was." Baker was sitting second and looking as though he would progress in heat 13, only to be narrowly pipped on the buzzer by Brazilian Peterson Crisanto. Crisanto needed a wave score of 5.00 points or more to leap ahead of Baker and earned a 5.30 on his buzzer ride to finish with a two-wave heat score of 11.50. Baker, the 2022 Surfest champion, finished third with 11.20. Brazilian Samuel Pupo took a commanding win with a score of 15.24. Cibilic was the first local to advance to the round of 32, set to be surfed on Friday. The 25-year-old natural-footer hit the lead in heat 10 with 10 minutes remaining and won with a best two-wave score of 12.00 points. He edged Hawaiian Finn McGinn (11.60) in second while Australian Mikey (11.10) and Japan's Tenshi Iwami (9.23) were eliminated. "I'm frothing and stoked to get through," Cibilic said. "You don't really need local knowledge out there on a day like today, just fitness to get back out there and get in the right spot. "I feel like I took off on 15 waves and fell off on 13 of them, so I'm just stoked that I pulled off a couple. "In the off-season, I really worked on getting fit and trying to surf with a clear head, especially for conditions like this." Merewether's Philippa Anderson is through to the women's round of 32 after winning her opening round heat on Monday. Merewether's Jackson Baker and adopted Novocastrian Julian Wilson were big-name Surfest casualties on a mixed day for local competitors in tricky conditions at Merewether beach on Thursday. Merewether's Morgan Cibilic and Ryan Callinan both advanced in bumpy 1.2 to 1.8-metre waves and are now set to go head-to-head in the round-of-32 surfers. Cilbilic took a heat win while Callinan progressed after placing second in his heat as the opening event of the World Surf League Challenger Series (CS) was back in action on Thursday after two lay days. Callinan quickly got to work in heat 12, posting wave scores of 5.83 and 5.87 before locking in a 7.50-point effort to set up progression. "It was definitely pretty rogue and all over the place, and a lot of power but pretty fun," Callinan said of the conditions. "I was just happy to catch waves and ride waves. It felt like a kind of day where you could just sit and wait for one and not be any good anyway, so I just wanted to get my feet under me and ended up getting some really good scores. "It got very stressful at the end, but I was stoked to get through." American Nolan Rapoza won the heat with 13.50 points. Callinan (13.37) locked in second but Indonesian 21-year-old Bronson Meydi (13.17) closed right in on the heat leaders with seven minutes remaining, when he produced a spectacular 8.67-point ride that included a 360-degree air reverse. "I went the same wave but I went the other way," Callinan said. "Merewether, traditionally, is a right-hander. He went left and I was thinking, 'That's good, it's normally pretty bad the left, so that's good for me', and then I hear them say, 'Eight points' ... and there was still a lot of time left. "I only needed a six to get to first, so I kind of tried to focus on getting that but at the same time trying to block him on waves that were going to allow him to get it. "My year has kind of felt like I've had some good heats and they just haven't gone my way, and it was almost feeling a bit like that again, but I was stoked to squeak through." Former Championship Tour (CT) surfer Wilson, who grew up on the Gold Coast but now calls Newcastle home, is staging a professional comeback after several years out of the competitive limelight and arrived at Surfest after making the final of the top-tier Gold Coast Pro in early May as a trialist. The 36-year-old produced a commanding heat win when Surfest started on Monday but could not back it up in the second round on Thursday. Wilson, Surfest's 2020 winner, was unable to post a higher wave score than 4.17 points in tricky, wind-swept conditions in a stacked heat and ultimately finished fourth with a two-wave total of 4.94 points. Hawaiian Eli Hannerman was the heat-nine winner with 13.50 points, including a heat-high 7.67-point ride. Australian Liam O'Brien (12.93) was second and also progressed while Frenchman Charly Quivront (11.70) was third. "It's one of those things where you like to think you have a bit of local knowledge, but on a day like today, when it's breaking everywhere, it can be anyone's game," Callinan said. "Jules has been on such a roll and in such good form ... for him to not even get a score, that does show how hard it was." Baker was sitting second and looking as though he would progress in heat 13, only to be narrowly pipped on the buzzer by Brazilian Peterson Crisanto. Crisanto needed a wave score of 5.00 points or more to leap ahead of Baker and earned a 5.30 on his buzzer ride to finish with a two-wave heat score of 11.50. Baker, the 2022 Surfest champion, finished third with 11.20. Brazilian Samuel Pupo took a commanding win with a score of 15.24. Cibilic was the first local to advance to the round of 32, set to be surfed on Friday. The 25-year-old natural-footer hit the lead in heat 10 with 10 minutes remaining and won with a best two-wave score of 12.00 points. He edged Hawaiian Finn McGinn (11.60) in second while Australian Mikey (11.10) and Japan's Tenshi Iwami (9.23) were eliminated. "I'm frothing and stoked to get through," Cibilic said. "You don't really need local knowledge out there on a day like today, just fitness to get back out there and get in the right spot. "I feel like I took off on 15 waves and fell off on 13 of them, so I'm just stoked that I pulled off a couple. "In the off-season, I really worked on getting fit and trying to surf with a clear head, especially for conditions like this." Merewether's Philippa Anderson is through to the women's round of 32 after winning her opening round heat on Monday.
